News of: Thursday, 9th of October, 2008

Front Page

As the domino effect of the financial meltdown on Wall Street sends shock waves through Europe with Iceland teetering on the brink of bankruptcy for the first time since the advent of economic globalisation, governments rushed to salvage whatever they could yesterday.

In reversal of its earlier stance, the Awami League (AL) yesterday strongly opposed the Election Commission's (EC) authority to cancel candidatures in parliamentary polls on grounds of violation of electoral laws.

Many so-called reformist leaders of BNP are facing the wrath of their party colleagues in respective areas and constituencies across the country, as the activists are still confused about the dissidents' position in the party.

Chief Adviser (CA) Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday told a British parliamentary delegation that the state of emergency is part of Bangladesh's constitution, not any extra-constitutional measure, and it is not affecting the common people.

BNP might assign a group of former bureaucrats, most of who are not directly involved with it, to draw up electoral strategies and a manifesto, and carry out a survey on prospective candidates for the upcoming parliamentary polls.

The Truth and Accountability Commission (Tac) will begin issuing notices on high government officials in a week, directing them to answer their alleged complicity in corruption, its Chairman Justice Habibur Rahman Khan yesterday said.

Myanmar will export natural gas to Bangladesh if it finds new gas reserves while it has shown interest in setting up a hydropower project in that country from where electricity could be supplied to Bangladesh.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) yesterday filed 15 separate cases against 24 persons including seven engineers of the Chittagong Development Authority (CDA) on charge of grafts and irregularities in the construction of a road.

Two Americans and one Japanese won the Nobel Prize in chemistry yesterday for the discovery and development of a brightly glowing protein first seen in jellyfish, work that has helped scientists study how cancer cells spread.

Editorial

WE would like to give the BNP the benefit of the doubt and to assume that it is approaching its differences with the government and the EC in good faith and with the intent of resolving all outstanding issues.

THE Eid holidays, the time for festivity, turned out to be a nightmare for the large number of patients seeking treatment in city hospitals. One new-born baby died as no doctor was available at Mitford Hospital to attend him in the evening before Eid Day. And many patients, in desperate need of emergency medicare, suffered due to shortage of doctors at the DMCH and other hospitals.

ALL the experiments of this caretaker government (CTG) for bringing a qualitative change in the country's politics do not appear to have worked out. The CTG tried to promote an idea of changing the Constitution for balancing power between the president and the prime minister. It also initiated an idea to constitute a national security council. But all the ideas have come to naught.

THE United States Congress has passed the much-talked about Indo-American civilian nuclear accord bill, and the deal has crossed all major hurdles towards its implementation. The House of Representatives passed it by 298-117 votes, and the Senate approved it by 87-13 votes. Now the accord awaits the formal signing by the two governments.

PAKISTAN'S new President, Asif Ali Zardari, went to Washington and negotiated at high levels with the American administration in his own inimitable style. His immediate purposes were, of necessity, twofold: First, the Pakistan economy is in dire straits. Specifically, its current account deficit is deep in the red, and Pakistan will soon have to pay out something like $14 billion, mainly the differences between imports and exports.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has introduced better remuneration and more prize money for cricketers for the 10th National Cricket League, which kicks off the 2008-09 domestic season tomorrow across the country.

Pakistani fast bowler Mohammad Asif will fly to Mumbai early Thursday to appear before an Indian tribunal in a bid to clear his name of doping allegations that have stalled his career, his lawyer said.

Rio Ferdinand has launched a blistering attack on FIFA for failing to deal with racism in football after Croatia were fined just 14,920 pounds (19,084 euros) for abuse aimed at England striker Emile Heskey in Zagreb.

Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain, is insulted by claims from Virender Sehwag that Australia cheated during their acrimonious SCG victory in January. Sehwag said there was no point in having a catching pact for the four-Test series, which starts in Bangalore on Thursday, because it wasn't applied properly on the previous occasion.

Plans to stage the world's richest cricket match in Antigua next month were thrown into disarray on Tuesday when the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) lost a dispute with sponsors Digicel in London's High Court.

The Bangladesh-New Zealand series will be named the BRAC Bank Series 2008, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced at the press conference at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur yesterday.

The Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) efforts to arrange a home series have been dealt a blow as West Indies have opted not to tour next month because of security concerns. Senior players had already expressed concerns about visiting Pakistan and the decision comes a week after the West Indies women's team called off the Pakistan leg of their Asian tour.

In a bid to prevent Test cricket from getting overshadowed by the immensely popular Twenty20 version, the International Cricket Council (ICC) yesterday said it would consider revamping the Future Tours Programme (FTP) to ensure that the longer version of the game "remains strong".

Business

Major central banks launched a surprise joint effort to battle the global financial crisis on Wednesday, simultaneously slashing interest rates to bolster battered markets, while Britain rushed out a package worth up to 875 billion dollars to head off a banking collapse.

Bangladesh and Myanmar traders yesterday identified stringent visa regime, lack of direct shipping line, road and air links and lack of direct banking facilities as the major obstacles to smooth growth of bilateral trade between the two neighbouring countries.

A high-level delegation of Myanmar Ministers and businesses leaders yesterday expressed interest to increase their imports from Beximco Pharmaceuticals Ltd as they visited its state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities at Tongi.

Metropolitan

Lambasting Adviser Hossain Zillur Rahman for his recent statement that the December 18 parliamentary election will be held under the state of emergency, BNP Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain yesterday said the adviser's comment will exacerbate public confusion about the poll.

Leader of visiting UK parliamentary delegation of Home Affairs Committee Keith Vaz MP yesterday said they would request the Department for International Development (DFID) to finance the proposed catering institute in Sylhet.

Primary and Mass Education Adviser Rasheda K Choudhury yesterday said political commitment is a must to ensure the rights of the differently able people and actions should be taken in this regard through specific plans.

Awami League (AL) presidium member Abdur Razzak yesterday called on the people irrespective of all races, colours and creeds to get united to rebuild the country with the spirit of secularism under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina.

Only one percent of the results of the controversial 27th BCS Examinations published afresh may not be correct due to complications of the quota system, claimed Public Service Commission (PSC) Chairman Dr Saadat Hussain yesterday.

University Students' Association of Charghat-Bagha yesterday urged the political parties to nominate candidates who believe in the spirit of the liberation war for the national polls from Rajshahi-5 (Bagha-Charghat) constituency.

Two city roads have been renamed after Communist Party of Bangladesh President Rashed Khan Mennon and Bir Uttam Shamsul Alam in recognition of their contributions to the liberation war, says a press release of Dhaka City Corporation (DCC).

The fourth teachers' registration examinations for qualifying for appointment to private education institutions under monthly payment order (MPO) will now be held on November 14-15 instead of October 17 and 18 at 20 district headquarters across the country.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) will hold the preliminary test of the 28th Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations in the last week of November and invite applications for the 29th batch in January next year.

Family Planning Association of Bangladesh (FPAB) invited reporters of different print media in the country to submit their reports or features for the FPAB award on journalism for 2008, says a press release.

Leaders of Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) and Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) yesterday afternoon felicitated members of the Hindu community on the occasion of Durga Puja and urged all to maintain the existing communal harmony in the country.

National

Prospect of Aman paddy seems bleak in Kurigram and Lalmonirhat districts as paddy plants on vast areas of land are attacked with diseases caused by lack of Triple Super Phosphate (TSP) and Murate of Potash (MoP).

Cadres of M-L faction of outlawed Purbo Banglar Communist Party (PBCP) are regrouping and have again raised their heads in outlaw-infested Rupsha, Terokhada and Phultala upazilas of Khulna district ahead of the planned parliamentary elction.

The Dinajpur unit of BNP, facing leadership crisis since the death of its leader Khurshid Jahan Haque in June 2006, has remained virtually ineffective since declaration of emergency in January last year.

Ten people were injured, two of them seriously, in a clash between a gang of drug traders and members of local drug resistance committee at Puran Bazar in Chandpur town Tuesday night, locals and police said.

Russian forces pulled back from positions outside Georgia's separatist South Ossetia region, bulldozing a camp at a key checkpoint and withdrawing as European Union monitors followed. A Russian general said the pullout would be completed yesterday.

Arts & Entertainment

With his magical voice and powerful presentation, folk maestro Abdul Alim stirred the senses of the nation. Unfortunately, over three decades after his death, the legendary artiste is occasionally remembered and very few initiatives have been taken to preserve his songs.

Dhaka Theatre's production Nimojjon will be staged twice at the 20th Cairo International Theatre Festival, Egypt, informed the discussants at a press conference held yesterday at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA).

Shammilito Shangshkritik Jote's Pabna district unit organised an Eid reunion and reception programme at Pabna Bonomali auditorium premises recently. The programme included discussion and cultural programme. Different cultural organisations took part and performed at the programme. Noted TV artiste Masum Aziz, originally from Pabna, was accorded a reception at the programme.

Special TV play for Durga Puja, titled Mon-e Taar Nitya Asha Jawa, will be aired tonight at 8:50 pm on Rtv. Directed by Ashrafi Mithu, the play is an adaptation of Rabindranath Tagore's poem Banshi. The screenplay has been written by Russell O'Neil.

OP-ED

AT last, the signs of returning to parliamentary democracy are becoming clearer because of a fresh commitment for a credible national election by CA, encouraging statement of the army chief of a good elected government from January 2009, the US consent to send observers to Bangladesh national election, and positive signs of consent from BNP and its alliance partners to participate in the national election of December 2008.

In New York for the United Nations General Assembly, Iran's tough-talking Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki sat down with Newsweek's Lally Weymouth to discuss how he sees U.S.-Iranian relations and Iran's growing power.

TODAY, with a $71 billion economy and per capita income of roughly $500-plus and growth rate averaging 6% during past 3 years, the Bangladesh economy has accelerated to an impressive level. However, the capital market in Bangladesh is still underdeveloped and its development is imperative for full realisation of the country's development potential.